Our First Two Weeks

Wow! It has been a very eventful two weeks since we left Texas to head to Russia. We are so excited to be here and so thankful for your prayers and God’s faithfulness. These first two weeks have been about getting settled in (and we are about to make a planned move to our second location this Friday the 2^nd), getting acquainted with our English teaching responsibilities and schedules, getting to know our team, and learning how to get around the city (Rebekah loves riding the “trams, ” or railcars). We have had opportunities to dialogue with quite a few English-speaking Russians through the school where we teach, existing English discussion groups, and a couple of other gatherings. We begin language learning this week with a personal tutor, so please pray for our perseverance as we seek to learn the language of the people with whom we long to share the light and hope of Christ. Until we learn the language, we will be very limited in the ways that we can be used in the lives of Russian people.

We attended our first Russian worship service this morning and were very blessed, although the experience was quite different than we are used to. Rebekah attended a children's service. She became a little stressed by so many new people speaking a different language and was a little withdrawn by the end of the service time, although she did great during the first hour or so.

Prayer Highlights:

-That we would focus on a close, personal walk with the Lord

-Continued adjustment to urban Russian life for the whole family

-Wisdom to take life at the pace God would have for us

-Language learning!